Chapter 15
Selena’s POV
The bond snaps into place with such force that I flinch on the bed. Power surges through my veins like liquid fire, and suddenly I can feel them all, every wolf in our territory, their emotions crashing over me in waves. Fear. Confusion. Panic.
“Something’s wrong,” I whisper, my eyes meeting Rylan’s. We dress quickly and rush down the packhouse stairs into the clearing.
A desperate howl pierces the night, followed by screams that chill my blood. Not just any howl, a warning. We’re under attack.
“Rogues at the northern border!” A warrior bursts into the clearing, blood streaming down his arm. “At least thirty of them. They’ve broken through the first line!”
Chaos erupts around me. Warriors shout over one another, some already shifting, others frozen in indecision. I feel their fear pulsing through the pack bonds, so many connections suddenly alive in my mind, overwhelming yet crystal clear.
Without thinking, I step forward. “Enough.”
I don’t raise my voice, yet everyone falls silent. The power in my single word ripples through the clearing like a physical force.
“Delta team, go south. Beta, east. Gamma, west. The rest of you come north with Rylan and me.”
I turn to Rylan’s parents, Alpha Roland and Luna Vivienne, and continue, "Move the women, children, and elderly into the packhouse safe room.”
“Healers, prepare for casualties.” The commands flow from me like instinct. “Move. Now.”
They obey instantly. Not human. Not omega. Lycan, truly Lycan, and every wolf before me recognizes it in their bones.
Rylan’s eyes meet mine with fierce pride. “Together,” he says, and it’s not a question.
We run as one toward the northern border, shifting mid-stride.
My wolf emerges without pain now, she is me, I am her, and the distinction has vanished.
My paws hit the earth with purpose, my white fur gleaming under the moonlight.
Rylan’s massive black form runs beside me, not ahead, not behind, but at my flank where he belongs.
The scent of blood and unfamiliar wolves grows stronger. We crest the hill and see them, rogues tearing through our warriors, their eyes wild with bloodlust. Without hesitation, I launch myself into the fray.
I take down a rogue twice my size, my teeth finding his throat with deadly precision. Another lunges at me from the side, but I’m already pivoting, using the momentum to slash across his flank. These aren’t calculated human moves, this is pure Lycan instinct, ancient and powerful.
Rylan and I move like we share a single mind. When I lunge left, he covers right. When he draws three rogues toward him, I circle behind them. We don’t need words or signals; the mate bond pulses between us, stronger than any battle strategy.
A massive gray rogue slams into my side, sending me tumbling toward a ravine. Before I can regain my footing, Rylan is there, his powerful jaws clamping down on the attacker’s spine with a sickening crack. His eyes meet mine, concerned but not patronizing.
I have no time to acknowledge him before two more rogues charge us.
Rylan moves to intercept both, but I’m faster.
I leap over his back in a fluid arc, taking down the larger one while he handles the other.
The rogue beneath me struggles, but I’m stronger than I look.
When Rylan turns to help, I’ve already subdued my opponent, my jaws steady around his throat.
I don’t need saving, I project through our bond.
I never thought you did, comes his immediate reply, respect evident in every word.
Around us, the tide is turning. Our pack warriors fight with renewed vigor, drawing strength from our example. Where there was chaos, now there is coordination. Where there was fear, now there is fierce determination. The rogues begin to fall back, unprepared for such unified resistance.
When the last rogue either flees or falls, I stand tall among the battlefield, blood matting my white fur.
I shift back to human form, unconcerned with my nakedness.
Someone drapes a cloak over my shoulders, but I barely notice.
The pack gathers around us, their expressions transformed.
They look at me differently now, not with curiosity or suspicion, but with reverence.
Rylan shifts beside me, his powerful human form splattered with blood and dirt. Without warning, he kneels before me, right there in front of everyone. Not cowering, not submitting, but choosing.
“Selena,” he says, his voice carrying across the suddenly silent clearing.
“I knelt to no one before you, and I will kneel to no one after. Not because you need my protection, but because you deserve my devotion. You are not my possession or my subordinate, you are my equal, my balance, my heart. I will never again diminish what you are, what you’ve always been. ”
The words hang between us, weighted with promise. For a moment, I hesitate, feeling the eyes of every wolf upon us. This is more than accepting a mate, this is accepting a destiny.
I reach out, taking his face in my hands. “Rise, Rylan. Stand beside me where you belong.”
He stands, and when our hands clasp together, a ripple of energy passes through the pack. They bow their heads, not in submission, but in acknowledgment.
The moon breaks through the clouds above us, illuminating the bloodied battlefield and the wolves who now look to us for leadership. In this moment, I understand what we’ve become.
“The future Alpha and his Luna have returned,” someone whispers.
I squeeze Rylan’s hand and lift my chin. “Yes,” my voice carries across the clearing.
“Our Alpha and Luna ceremony will come… soon. Change starts now. Especially how you treat omegas and humans.”